Summary: The rapid explosion of technological advances in the biomedical sciences should be paralleled with enhanced proficiency in emerging areas of biomedical research. The RCMI Faculty Professional Development (FPD) activity will provide direction and oversight to increase technological acuity, expand knowledge in areas of health inequities and develop skills in diverse areas of biomedical research. This effort will ultimately lead to a strengthened research programs and competitive proposals for extramural contracts and grants from federal and state agencies. The FPD will provide a number of collaborative and strategic learning resources to cultivate faculty investigators including; conferences or workshops to acquire specific skills or knowledge, structured learning, housed seminars with nationally renowned speakers, mentorship programs, specialized training, and skill based workshops, grants assistance and constructive retrospective and prospective evaluation. Moreover, the FPD mentors and grant writing consultants will oversee and organize faculty investigator-initiated funding applications, to support services of the research program administration (RPA) staff. The coordinated activities and components including mentors, grant consultants, collaborators and the supportive grants office will enhance the faculty research productivity and caliber, subsequently leading to greater competitive placement for extramural funding. The major goal of the RCMI program is to support the development and expansion of a strong infrastructure for conducting research ultimately leading to greater understanding of/ or preventative and therapeutic strategies to lessen morbidity and mortality in minority groups. The goal of the RCMI FPD program is to provide faculty with the needed tools and skills to lead research discovery to improve the health of ethnic and racial minorities.